USAID donates US$2 million to vulnerable urban residents

Tina Musonza Herald Correspondent

The United States Agency for International Development(USAID) has donated US$2 million dollars through the World Food Programme in a partnership aimed at supporting initiatives that complement Government’s efforts in the provision and realisation of food security in the country.

Speaking during the launch of the USAID’s support to the WFP urban resilience programme recently, acting Mission director Ms Priscila Sampil said the rendered support to WFP was aimed at ensuring food stability and betterment of livelihoods.

“The Urban Resilience programme will improve the ability of these urban households to meet their basic food and nutrition needs while reducing the negative coping strategies, and need for urgent assistance,” Ms Sampil.

She said the contributed funds were among a cocktail of interventions that the urban resilience programme had to tackle food security.

She said the programme had interventions that would focus on livelihoods to benefit communities with greenhouses, agricultural, on-agricultural income-generating activities that would help people sustain their lives.

“The Urban Resilience Program provides innovative opportunities for the World Food Programme and USAID to work in partnership with the Government of Zimbabwe, and other donors and stakeholders on transformative initiatives and long-lasting investments,” she added.

WFP representative and Country director Ms Francesca Erdelmann said WFP would continue working with Government to disburse the funds meant to benefit over 2000 vulnerable families into next year.

From May 2023 to June 2024, this assistance will go a long way to support approximately 2 100 households (10,500 individuals) in three urban locations.

She said the commitment put towards provision of food security was backed by a collaborative approach from USAID and WFP in support of the Government’s efforts to ensure food stability to communities.